


Play the Game

by SaucyWench



Series: Cups and Roses [1]
Category: Being Human (UK), Britchell - Fandom, Mitchers - Fandom, The Almighty Johnsons
Genre: Blood Drinking, Bondage, Established Relationship, Light Dom/sub, M/M, Prostate Massage
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2015-01-18
Updated: 2015-01-19
Packaged: 2018-03-08 04:01:03
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 2
Words: 5,244
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/3194564
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/SaucyWench/pseuds/SaucyWench
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Vampires hunger for things other than blood.  Anders tries to satisfy Mitchell.</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> You can thank my friends for it being split into two parts. They are an evil influence. Fun, but evil.

Anders craned his head around, wondering what was taking Mitchell so long. The bar wasn’t that crowded. He should have been back with the drinks by now.

He couldn’t help but grin when he spotted his lover. Mitchell was talking to some guy at the bar, leaning over and saying something with a smile on his face. He was flirting, of course. Mitchell flirted like most people breathed: constantly and without thought. It didn’t worry Anders. He knew where the brunet would be that night.

A subtle shift of his hips, a change in Mitchell’s face, the vampire leaned a fraction closer to the stranger, invading his personal space just a bit. The smile fell from Anders’ face. Mitchell wasn’t flirting. He was _hunting._

Anders slipped from his stool and started making his way across the bar. He kept his movements relaxed and casual. It wouldn’t be good to have Mitchell get defensive right now. He caught himself rubbing at the bend of his elbow, where there were fang marks under his shirt.

Mitchell had fed only yesterday. The vampire wasn’t hunting for blood. There were other, darker things Mitchell needed to keep his bloodlust under control. Those appetites were not sated by a normal feeding. Mitchell buried them for as long as he could, but they eventually surfaced. Anders swallowed hard when he thought of the last time that had happened. It had been painful, and afterward Mitchell had avoided him for days out of shame and guilt. Anders knew that Mitchell wouldn’t seriously hurt him, but anyone else might not survive the experience. If it kept Mitchell from killing someone, he could stand a little pain.

Anders could see the tension in Mitchell’s shoulders when he walked up. His facial expression didn’t change, but Anders knew him well enough to know he was unhappy about being interrupted in his hunt. If the vampire was wound that tight, things were worse than Anders had thought. They needed to leave.

Anders stopped beside Mitchell, making sure not to step between the vampire and his prey. He kept an easy smile on his face as he said, “Hey, babe. You’ve been gone a while.”

Mitchell’s eyes narrowed a bit, but his relaxed tone matched Anders’ when he answered, “Yeah, sorry. I guess I got caught up in talking to my new friend here. Let me get the bartender’s attention and I’ll get our drinks.”

“Since the distraction was my fault, how about you allow me to buy you both a round?” the guy said. He gave Anders a friendly smile.

Anders resisted the urge to snarl at the idiot to run. Instead, he loosened his tie a bit and slid his hand under his collar to the back of his neck. He rubbed there, feigning an ache. “Eh, maybe next time. It’s been a long day. I’m ready to go home and fall into bed. What do you say, babe, ready to go?” He quit rubbing the back of his neck, but allowed his fingers to linger, trailing across the skin of his throat where he could feel his pulse. He fought not to sigh with relief when Mitchell focused on those fingers.

“It’s still early yet,” the man protested, but he had already ceased to exist for Mitchell.

Anders ignored the way Mitchell’s eyes were flicking between his neck and his mouth as he said, “I didn’t say anything about going to sleep, did I? Next time, first round’s on me.” He gave the guy a friendly pat on the shoulder. When Mitchell stiffened next to him, he realized his mistake. It wouldn’t do to make the vampire jealous right now, so he stepped back and held his hand out. Mitchell took it, his grip a bit too tight, but Anders didn’t try to pull away. He barely had time to smile and nod at the man before Mitchell was leading him outside.

Mitchell tried to pull him towards the alley, but Anders balked. Whatever was going to happen, he didn’t want it to happen in an environment he couldn’t control, and possibly in front of witnesses. He suggested, “Why don’t we go home?”

Closing his eyes, Mitchell nodded. When he opened them again, some of the intensity in his eyes had faded and he relaxed his grip on Anders. “Yeah, home’s a good idea.”

It was only a short distance away, so they were on foot. Anders tried to ignore the way Mitchell kept tensing up. He had no idea what set the vampire off to the point of having to struggle for control. Mitchell was not his normally chatty self so they walked in silence, Anders half a step in front of Mitchell.

When Anders unlocked the door, Mitchell followed him inside silently. He went to the kitchen while Mitchell shut the door and locked it with a quiet click. He acted like everything was normal, fixing a drink while Mitchell glided closer. The Dracula routine was making him feel stalked.

Leaving his glass on the counter, Anders turned to Mitchell. Unable to handle the silence any longer, he asked, “Are you okay?”

Without replying, Mitchell stepped closer, crowding him. Anders took a step away, but Mitchell pursued him until he was backed against the wall. When a hand shot out and grabbed his throat, Anders reached up to knock it away. Mitchell grabbed that hand, pinning it against the wall. Anders fought the urge to struggle. Mitchell wasn’t hurting him, merely holding him in place against the wall.

“I usually don’t go for the strong and silent type,” Anders tried to lighten the mood.

“I know.” There was no answering humor in Mitchell’s voice. “I saw you.”

“Saw me? Saw me do what?” Anders asked. He was confused, but had a sinking feeling in his stomach.

“Flirting with that woman at the bar. I’m surprised you managed to tear yourself away.”

“She was asking a question! I wasn’t flirting with anyone!” Anders protested.

“I. Saw. You.”

Now the hand on his throat started to squeeze. Anders’ free hand came up and he pushed at Mitchell. Mitchell’s reply was to squeeze harder. Anders let his arm fall and quit struggling.

“Mitchell,” Anders whispered. A flex of the hand on his throat and Anders couldn’t breathe.

Mitchell blinked, and again the tension flowed away. He released Anders, whirling around to go sit on the couch. Anders rubbed his neck, watching Mitchell bury his face in his hands. Mitchell muttered something, but Anders didn’t catch it. Before he could say anything Mitchell dropped his hands, sat back, and sighed.

“I’m sorry,” Mitchell said.

“Why didn’t you say something sooner?”

“I know you weren’t flirting. Or if you were, you didn’t intend anything.” Mitchell was still not looking at him.

Anders huffed. “That’s not what I mean. You’re on edge tonight.”

“On edge.” With a sardonic laugh, Mitchell nodded. “That’s one way to put it.”

Taking a few steps closer, Anders said, “Call it what you want. You should have said something sooner, before you got like this. We could have done something and handled it before –“

“I don’t want to handle it!” Mitchell jumped up and starting to pace. “I don’t want to be like this! It’s bad enough to be some sort of parasite. No, not even that. At least parasites take what they need without the urge to torture their food.”  

Watching him pace, Anders said, “So, we’ll do something about it then.”

Mitchell dramatically flopped on the couch, slouching down until his head was leaning on the back of it. “I don’t want to talk about it right now.”

Anders stared at Mitchell while Mitchell stared at the ceiling. Last time they had let it go too long. They needed this taken care of before Mitchell snapped and did something truly regrettable. Still watching Mitchell, he shrugged out of his jacket and hung it on the back of a chair. Then he tugged off his tie and dropped it on the table.

Anders crossed the room, ignoring Mitchell’s pouting. He kneeled on the couch so he could straddle the vampire’s lap.

Mitchell frowned at him. “I said I don’t want to talk about it.”

“Good,” Anders smiled at him. “I’ve no intention of talking.” He leaned forward and lightly kissed Mitchell.

Mitchell kissed back, but that was it. His hands stayed on the couch to either side of Anders’ knees, and he made the blond come to him. Anders accepted the challenge, scooting forward until his ass was pressed against Mitchell’s lap, deepening the kiss. When he ground down, he could feel that at least some part of Mitchell was paying attention.

Anders broke the kiss and tilted back. A quick glance showed him that Mitchell’s fingers were pressing into the couch cushions. Mitchell was still too wide-eyed, though.

Trying to reassure him, Anders said, “I love you.”

That got a small smile. “I love you too,” Mitchell answered.

“And I trust you,” he went on.

The smile vanished. Instead, Mitchell got the look that Anders hated. It reminded him of a dog that had been beaten, but still hoped to be met with kindness instead of a kick. It was a look that said Mitchell not only expected to be spurned, but that he thought he deserved it. Thankfully it was also a look that Mitchell had worn less and less as they spent time together. It brought a twist to his stomach to see it on his lover’s face now.

“You won’t break me,” Anders said and kissed the tip of Mitchell’s nose.

“I could,” Mitchell said. ‘If I’m not careful, I might hurt you.”

“Yes,” Anders nodded. “But if I tried, I could hurt you too. I trust that you won’t.” Before Mitchell could say anything else, Anders kissed him again.

This time Mitchell was more responsive, but he was still under control. His hands were still pressed into the couch on either side of Anders’ legs. At this rate they might go to bed, have sex, and then go to sleep. It would be nice, fun even, but the vampire in Mitchell wouldn’t get his needs met. They’d keep building up: the need to hurt, torture, maim, kill. Until one day he’d snap and then things could get messy. Anders needed him to let go of that control now, before the need for violence grew too urgent to be satisfied in such a domesticated fashion.

Anders laid little kisses in a trail along Mitchell’s jaw. He sucked an earlobe into his mouth and nibbled at it. He ground down again, noting that Mitchell was happy to have him there. He carded his fingers through dark curls and felt Mitchell start to relax. Anders fisted his hand in Mitchell’s hair, jerked his head to the side, and bit his neck.

Mitchell hissed and exploded into motion. The next thing Anders knew, he was on his back on the couch, Mitchell between his legs, arms pinned above his head. He struggled, but not hard, only enough to keep the vampire part of Mitchell interested.

Mitchell growled and said, “You’re playing a dangerous game tonight.” He kissed Anders hard, and then released his arms.

Anders nudged Mitchell over enough to be able to slide out from under him. He stood up and said, “Good. I like games.”

Anders walked over to the door, and saw Mitchell tense from the corner of his eye. He had no doubt that if he tried to leave right now, the vampire would give chase. It gave him an idea. He toed off his shoes and then balanced on one leg at a time to take off his socks while saying, “I used to enjoy playing with my brothers when we were young. We’d make up all sorts of nonsense.”

“Oh?” Mitchell was still on the couch watching him, coiled like a spring.

Anders walked around to the side of the couch, aware that Mitchell was watching his every move. He nodded, saying, “Sure, you know how kids are. Do you know what my favorite game was?”

“No idea,” Mitchell said, smiling.

“Tag.” Anders shot him a grin. “And you’re it.” He darted for the bedroom.

A curse and thud behind him, and Anders barely got into the door before being grabbed from behind. Mitchell swooped him up, only to drop him on the bed and follow him down. Anders wound up pinned by the vampire once more.

“Looks like I caught you. What’s my prize?” The tone was light, but the intensity was back in Mitchell’s face.

“A kiss?” Anders offered.

“Nah, I get those a lot.”

Acting offended, Anders said, “Too common for you now? Fine. What do you want?”

“Your clothes, to start. Take them off. I want you naked.” Mitchell licked his lips.

“I can do that.”

Mitchell moved and Anders rolled off the bed. He started to unbutton his shirt, asking, “Aren’t you going to get undressed too?”

“Nah, not yet.”

Anders made a show of it, slowly undressing as Mitchell sat back on the bed and watched. Once he was naked, Anders ran a hand down his chest and asked, “Like what you see?”

Mitchell nodded. Anders gave him a smile and crawled back up on the bed. Mitchell caught him around the waist, flipping them until he was on top and giving Anders a kiss that was more teeth than anything. Anders was breathless when the kiss broke.

“I want to tie you down,” Mitchell said.

Anders was already half hard, and his cock jumped at the idea as he nodded. Mitchell gave him a smile, and got up. He disappeared into the closet. After a few minutes of rummaging around, he returned with four heavy leather restraints.

First, Mitchell pressed a kiss on Anders’ wrist and buckled the cuff on. Then, with a quick glance under the bed, he grabbed the chain that was already fastened to the bed frame. He clipped the cuff to the chain, and then walked around the bed to repeat the actions on the other wrist. He did the same at the ankles, dropping a kiss on each pulse point before fastening the cuffs around them. Once Anders was securely tied down spread-eagled, Mitchell stepped back and surveyed his work.

Anders asked, “What are you doing?”

“Deciding where to start,” Mitchell replied.

“How about a kiss?”

Mitchell raised a brow. “How about you quit being so bratty?”

Unrepentant, Anders grinned at him. Mitchell reached out and trailed a finger up the sole of his foot, making him jerk back with a squeak.

“Maybe I should just tickle you all night. Make you squirm,” Mitchell returned the grin.

“Aw, come on. You don’t want to do that,” Anders said with a mock pout.

“Wrong. I definitely want to make you squirm.” The smile on Mitchell’s face changed, making Anders lick his lips. “Make you beg. Make you scream.”

Anders’ breath sped up. “Then why don’t you come over here and try?”

“Maybe I’m waiting for you to lose your attitude.”

“Then you might be there a while,” Anders said with a little laugh.

“I think even I would grow old and die before you lost your attitude.” Mitchell walked around to the side of the bed, sitting on it and turning sideways to face Anders.

“It’s one of the many reasons you love me, though,” Anders said.

“Probably,” Mitchell agreed. He reached over and lightly ran a fingertip down Anders’ chest, swirling it around his navel for a moment.

Anders said, “I have somewhere else you can put your hand,” and rolled his hips.

Mitchell pinched Anders’ nipple hard enough to make him gasp. “I’ll put my hand where I want. You’re my prize for the night, remember?”

Anders smiled and nodded, saying, “Yes sir.”

With a huff, Mitchell went back to running his fingers across Anders’ torso. He turned so he was kneeling on the bed facing Anders, and started trailing fingers down legs and arms as well. He was leaving feathery touches all over, except where Anders wanted it. When those fingers traced up his throat, he tilted his head back to allow better access. Mitchell leaned down and kissed him, then sat back up.

“I love seeing you like this. Spread out and eager for me,” Mitchell said, running his finger around the edge of Anders’ jaw. “It makes me want to drain you dry.” He leaned over and looked Anders in the eye. “You’d make a beautiful vampire, you know.”

Anders froze. He had forgotten. With all the banter and games, he had forgotten that, strictly speaking, he wasn’t in bed with his lover Mitchell. He was tied down and helpless with a vampire.


	2. Chapter 2

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Here's the rest. Enjoy!

“I love seeing you like this. Spread out and eager for me,” Mitchell said, running his finger around the edge of Anders’ jaw. “It makes me want to drain you dry.” He leaned over and looked Anders in the eye. “You’d make a beautiful vampire, you know.”

Anders froze. He had forgotten. With all the banter and games, he had forgotten that, strictly speaking, he wasn’t in bed with his lover Mitchell. He was tied down and helpless with a vampire.

As if to illustrate the point, Mitchell kissed his forehead and said, “I can imagine how you would look taking your prey. It would be breathtaking.”

Fighting not to let his voice quaver, Anders said, “Mitchell, you’re making me nervous.” When Mitchell gave no reply, he swallowed and said, “John?”

At that, the vampire curled closer and gave him a lazy smile. “Don’t look like that. If anything ever happens to you, I would burn down the world until nothing was left, then salt the earth. My vengeance would know no bounds. I’m certainly not going to kill you myself.”

All this talk of vengeance and burning wasn’t exactly reassuring. “I’m going to die eventually.”

Mitchell’s expression never changed, but his eyes flashed black for a moment between blinks before he said, “Perhaps we shouldn’t talk of your mortality tonight.”

Anders nodded an agreement. Bragi was fuming uselessly in the back of his mind, but he stayed silent. He doubted he could say anything around the heartbeat in his throat anyway.

Mitchell moved around on the bed until he was kneeling between Anders’ legs. He reached behind him and pulled his shirt off over his head, leaving his curls in disarray, and dropped it on the floor. Vampire or not, the sight of him like that had Anders’ flagging erection filling again. Mitchell noticed and made a show of licking his lips before bowing down and taking Anders’ cock into his mouth.

Letting his head fall back, Anders closed his eyes and luxuriated in the sensation. Mitchell didn’t tease, going down until his nose was buried in wiry hair. Anders groaned and rocked his hips a tiny bit. Mitchell took it as encouragement and started bobbing his head, sliding his mouth up and down the hard length. It seemed like no time at all before Anders felt the heat start pooling in his stomach, his balls drawing up tighter. He was about three seconds away from coming when Mitchell pulled away with a pop. When his cock slapped his stomach, Anders whimpered and the vampire struck.

Mitchell bit on the inside of Anders’ thigh, halfway down. Anders knew he wasn’t doing it to feed, not there. The blood wouldn’t flow well enough. The vampire was simply tasting him. He raised his head, opening his eyes to watch as Mitchell mouthed at the small wound. Mitchell pulled away to watch as a trickle of blood ran down his skin before leaning back down to lick it away. The wound closed soon enough. Mitchell crawled up, blanketing Anders and kissing him. The kiss tasted of blood and sex and turned Anders on even more.

With a last quick peck, Mitchell broke the kiss and leaned over to grab the lube from the nightstand. Once he had it, he kneeled between Anders’ legs again. Anders watched as Mitchell put a dollop of lube on his finger and then reached down.

First Anders felt the chill of the lube, then pressure. When the finger breached him, the angle was a little awkward and he unthinkingly tried to draw his legs up. He frowned when the chains stopped him. He told the vampire, “Untie my legs.”

Rubbing Anders’ thigh with his free hand, Mitchell shushed him. “Not yet. You can take it like this for me.”

The finger pulled almost all the way out, only to be joined by another. Anders bit his lip. A drop of pre-come leaked from the tip of his cock, and they both watched as it dripped down to his stomach, leaving a shiny string. Mitchell twisted his wrist and wriggled his fingers, smiling when the blond gasped.

Anders closed his eyes, concentrating on the feeling of Mitchell’s hand. When fingers brushed his prostate, he bucked his hips. The fingers zeroed in on that spot, rubbing and tapping. A thumb pressed into his perineum, causing him to bow his back and arch off the bed. The thumb provided steady pressure, while the fingers inside persisted in rubbing the sensitive gland. He was leaking enough pre-come now for it to be a steady trickle, starting to run down one side of his stomach. The heat was coiling in his belly again, scalding and heavy. His orgasm was right there, building until he felt as if there was a rock over his bladder, but it didn’t happen.

Anders rolled his hips, whining, “Mitchell, please!” When that got no response, he tried again. Between panting breaths he said, “John, I need to come!”

Mitchell lessened the pressure of his fingers, but didn’t stop as he said, “Out of all the things I said I was going to do to you, I don’t remember making you come being on the list.” A sharp jab had Anders crying out before the light rubbing continued. “I did say I wanted to drain you, though.” He laughed at Anders’ wild-eyed look. “Poor little god, did you think I meant blood? Not at all. Not when there are other ways to drain you that are much more fun.” With his free hand, he ran a finger through the cooling puddle on Anders’ stomach and then licked it clean.

Rocking his hips down, Anders tried to find something, anything for relief. The fingers inside him moved with him, insistently rubbing while the thumb outside never wavered. Another hard jab and Anders bowed up from the bed. He jerked against the restraints, doing nothing more than causing the chains to rattle. His hands clenched into fists, trying to find something to hold on to as he thrashed.

It kept going until Anders felt like his whole body was one giant nerve, over-sensitized and exposed. With every beat of his heart, more fluid pumped from his leaking cock to gather and drip down onto his stomach. He thought that if Mitchell even breathed hard on him, he would come. Every muscle was taut and he could hear his own panting breath. His feet flexed, toes curling.  

Mitchell was relentless, rubbing until Anders was covered in sweat and whining. His free hand held Anders’ thigh, occasionally gliding a thumb over the bite mark left there. He pressed hard with both thumbs, one into the bite and one into Anders’ tender perineum, and smirked when Anders moaned.

Dancing on the edge of orgasm, Anders couldn’t think rationally. In between gasps he could hear himself saying please over and over, but couldn’t stop. He couldn’t see straight. His world had narrowed to those long fingers and their endless fluttering inside of him.

Finally, when it reached the point of being too much, Mitchell took mercy. He stopped and gently pulled his hands away. When he jumped up to wipe his hand off and peel off his jeans, Anders watched with hooded eyes. Naked now, Mitchell unhooked the ankle restraints from the chains before crawling up the bed to settle between Anders’ spread legs.

Still breathing heavily, Anders said, “About damn time! Fuck me already!” He rolled his hips.

“Be still,” Mitchell ordered. Catching one of Anders’ legs and throwing it over his shoulder, he slid into Anders with one powerful thrust. Propping himself up on one arm, he ran his hand through the slick and then started stripping Anders’ cock as he thrust forward again. He paused only long enough to adjust a bit, changing the angle so that when he moved again Anders cried out.

All the teasing had Anders so much on edge that it only took a few strokes before he came. The orgasm was so powerful that it felt like someone was pulling a hot chain through his prick and was bordering on painful. His mind blanked and his eyes rolled back in his head.

Mitchell released Anders’ leg so he could lean forward. Anders wrapped his legs around the vampire’s waist, body rocking with each hard thrust. He opened his eyes in time to see black eyes watching him before Mitchell bent down to press a kiss on his jaw. Suddenly a hand fisted in his hair, jerking his head to the side and exposing his throat. Sharp fangs were almost but not quite piercing the skin above the large artery there.

Every time Mitchell took blood from Anders’ neck, he was very careful. A bite too deep could cause a wound that would be deadly. He had only bitten Anders on the throat a couple of times, and never during the heat of passion. Anders knew that the angle was off, and the teeth set too far into his neck. He also knew that Mitchell was going to bite down when he came. Those teeth were going to slice his throat open and he’d be dead within minutes.

Anders panicked. He started struggling, jerking against the cuffs and trying to kick Mitchell away. Mitchell growled and bit down harder, fangs barely puncturing the skin. It was enough to make Anders quit fighting him, though. Mitchell’s hips started to stutter, losing his rhythm.

“John, wait,” Anders said, trying to break through the vampire’s haze. “Not there.” He tried to twist his head but the hand in his hair grasped tighter, pulling him against the cuff and stretching his arm. He could feel Bragi, ready to jump forward and say something, but the god’s skills only worked on mortals. A vampire was not mortal.

Another hard thrust made Anders whimper. He yanked against the cuffs again, but of course he couldn’t get loose. He could feel Mitchell about to reach his peak, and there was nothing he could do to defend himself from the bite he knew was coming. He started to shake. He was terrified, but was a little surprised to realize it was not only for himself. He knew that if Mitchell accidentally killed him, the vampire would never recover from it.

Still, he remembered what he had told the vampire earlier. He knew that Mitchell was in there somewhere behind the bloodlust.

“Okay then,” Anders whispered. He squeezed his eyes shut, but was unable to slow his breathing or still the fine tremble in his muscles. “It’ll be okay. I know you won’t hurt me. I trust you. I love you, Mitchell.”

At that, the vampire reared back and snarled. The hand in his hair vanished, only to slap down and cover his mouth. Anders’ eyes popped open in surprise, seeing black eyes and shining fangs. He closed his eyes again, not wanting that to be the image of his lover in his mind. Instead he pictured how Mitchell had looked this morning, still half asleep, running a hand through his curls while he waited on the toast to finish.

One final snap of hips hard against him, and Anders felt a hot throbbing deep inside. It barely registered before the vampire struck. Instead of the throat, Mitchell bit his shoulder, low enough that it was almost on his chest. It surprised him and he jumped with a grunt. The hand slipped from his mouth to rest on his throat, fingers on pulse points.

And then it was over. A tongue laved over the bite and Mitchell pulled out of him with a wet sound. Anders was exhausted, still shaking, and starting to ache all over, and he couldn’t help but wince.

“Sorry,” Mitchell murmured. “Hold still, you’re still bleeding.”

The bed jostled and Anders bit back a sharp retort. Where did Mitchell think he would go, since he was still cuffed to the bed? Instead he wriggled a wrist without opening his eyes, making the chain clink.

A muffled curse and then “Sorry, sorry.” Mitchell was muttering and Anders didn’t know if he knew he was talking out loud. “One second, hold still.”

Pressure on the bite, and Anders opened his eyes. Mitchell had grabbed gauze from the bathroom. He craned his neck. The gauze had a few flecks of blood, but nothing that warranted Mitchell’s reaction.

“For a vampire, you’re getting awfully jumpy about a little bit of blood.” He let his head fall back to the pillows and asked, “Mind letting me go now?”

“Sorry! Jesus, I’m sorry,” Mitchell said, quickly unfastening the cuffs around Anders’ wrists. Once he did that, he unbuckled the ones from Anders’ ankles and let them fall to the floor.

Anders watched him. Mitchell looked upset, eyes too wide and lips pressed together when he wasn’t muttering under his breath. “Hey, are you okay?”

Startled, Mitchell froze and stared at him. “Am I okay? You’re asking me if I’m okay. I should be asking you. Stay there!” He whirled and hurried out of the room.

Sitting up, Anders called, “Mitchell?” Another command to stay in bed floated through the door, so he checked the bite under the gauze. It had already quit bleeding. A quick inspection showed the one on his thigh had quit too, but he desperately needed a shower before going to bed. He snagged a shirt from the floor and used it to wipe away the worst of the mess adorning him.

Mitchell came back carrying a glass of orange juice and a few crackers, with a bottle of water tucked under his arm. He thrust them all at Anders. “Here.”

“Will you quit fussing if I drink something?” When Mitchell nodded, Anders took the juice and started sipping it.

Mitchell sat on the edge of the bed and sighed. Without looking at Anders, he asked again, “Are you okay? Did I hurt you?”

“I’m fine.” Mitchell shot him a doubtful look, but Anders smiled at him. “Honestly. I’m fine. You didn’t take that much blood.”

Mitchell looked at him then, eyes wide and chin trembling. “I’m so sorry.”

“Come here,” Anders coaxed. He lay back on the bed and opened his arms.

Mitchell fell against him with a sob, curling up against his chest. He ran a hand up and down Mitchell’s back, making soothing noises, trying to reassure them both that everything was fine, no one was hurt, it was okay. Mitchell clung to him and cried.

Finally Mitchell started to calm down. He wiped his face with his hand, and without raising his head he said, “I’m sorry, Anders. I’ll find another way. We won’t have to do this again.”

They both knew it was a lie.  

**Author's Note:**

> Thank you for reading, kudos, and comments! 
> 
> As always, I am over at Tumblr. Feel free to come say hi! 
> 
> [[My personal blog]](http://myseri.tumblr.com/)   
>  [[My writing blog]](http://saucywenchwritingblog.tumblr.com/)   
> 


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